Dace's Family Struggles
by WolfsieDoodles
Summary: An orphaned girl trained by her military foster father is abandoned to survive in an apocalypse. She's on a quest to find her mother, and on the way finds a new adopted family.
1. Chapter 1

The world was ending. Dace knew it. She understood from the empty house that her military foster dad had abandoned her. Dace sighed. Life for the Morrison girl always troublesome. It was the abusive father, the absent mother, dead foster mother, and a military foster father who taught her the use of weapons. She thought about the emergency reports, and quickly packed some things. Daciana grabbed a gun, silencer, food, water, flashlight, matches, fire starting kit, dog food, leash, radio, batteries, her medicine, and a blanket, which she put into a duffel bag.

She called her alusky , Kingsley, and went to the stable. Her knife, bow n' arrows, and beloved horse were there. 'Hey, Poppy. You ready to go on a journey?' she asked him. He obediently followed her, and she reined him up.

Atlanta, she thought, that's where Travis could be.

On the road, she didn't meet many people, cars, or walkers. It had been three days since the outbreak had started, and luckily no one had seen one in S.C.

The world seemed to stop in time; the electricity had gone out, so the news was mostly gone.

Dace had never wanted to leave, but she knew she wouldn't survive without an older person. It had been a week since she left. No people, walkers, or cars...same old view. Until one day, she met someone.

It was morning, and Dace just woke up in her campsite, but something was different. The fire was still going, with meat cooking on it. She turned to see three men, all talking. She tried to get up, but her hands were bound.

'Oh, the pretty one's awake!', one reported happily. They were rummaging through her stuff. One man held my bottle of medicine. 'She has Carpella Syndrome.', he smiled at her. 'What's that?', the third one asked.

'Well, it's a rare disease. Only a few have it. There's no cure, but this does slow it down. Brain damage at a young age, a part of the brain is no longer functioning without this. The medicine helps to prevent nervous breakdowns, hyperventilation, and comas.', the one holding the medicine grinned.

Dace was scared, they put her in an RV with her dog. The horse was set free and that was the last she saw of Poppy. In the RV, Dace was placed in a small closet with Kingsley. Time went by slowly, as it seemed to her, but in no time, the light of day faded underneath the door.

Finally, the next morning, she was taken out, and unbound. 'Okay, sweetums. We're gonna let you roam, but if you run, we'll shoot. First, introductions.

I am Tristan. The man over there is my brother, Alan. This is our doctor, and my friend, Derek.' Tristan said, 'Now, what's your name?'

'Casey', she lied, and they bought it. 'Well, Casey, you are going to be bound at night, and we'll let you out I'm the morning, deal?' Derek asked me. 'Can I have my medicine once a week?' Dace wondered. Derek nodded. 'Then, yes.' she agreed. Derek smiled. 'When did you last take your medicine?' he asked her. 'Yesterday.' she replied.

He took that into account, and Dace was left alone. She sat and watched and helped whenever asked. When night fell, the bound her, and put her in a bed to sleep in. They weren't caring, but they did feed her. She was thinking of a million ways to escape.

Six days of playing captive, something new came. Two men, rednecks to be exact. One held a crossbow, and the other, a knife. 'Hello, darlin'. Now, where is your parents?' the one with the knife asked her. 'Beats me. You could ask those guys.' Dace said, not looking up from her drawing.

The guy with the crossbow laughed, and she looked up to see the knife man mad. 'Tristan! These guys are looking for you!' Dace yelled to the RV. No Tristan. She got up and walked to the RV. Dace looked in and saw the man, dead. He had no wounds, but foamed at the mouth. 'Umm, well... Derek!?' she called out to the medic.

Derek was in the woods, but heard her, and ran. 'What?' he asked. 'I think Tristan Oded.' she said honestly. 'Why?' he asked. 'Well, foaming at the mouth, and he had my medicine.' Dace explained,'Oh, and these guys showed up.'

Derek looked at Tristan and agreed with her, but there was something gravely wrong. 'Casey... He took all of it.' he told her. 'What?!' Dace yelled, 'I'm gonna die. There's no way that... Why?'

'Calm down, we could find more.' Derek soothed. 'Where? Atlanta is gone! The only place I know to get it is...gone. My dad has an extra, but...he's gone.' Dace said. 'Where was he going?' the knife guy asked. 'How should I know? He didn't even leave a note when I got to the house!' she remembered.

'Your dad left you. You survived without any family?' the crossbow guy asked. 'Yeah.' Dace answered shortly. I was still freaking out. Her dad was gone, the medicine was gone, and now...what will happen to her?

'What was the medicine for?' the crossbow guy asked. 'Carpella Syndrome.' she replied. 'You too?' he smiled, and handed me an extra bottle. Dace thanked him like a million times. 'Casey, where's Alan?' Derek looked around, Alan was supposed to be watching me. 'Alan, why is that name familiar?' knife guy wondered.

Alan was in the forest, running for his life. Merle and Daryl Dixon were after him. He owed them money and he had stolen something from them. He would never go back to the kid and those two idiots.

'Alan said he was going to go see if there was something to eat. Then said he was going hunting.' Dace told Derek. 'Hunting? He's scared of it. He's a terrible aim. Then again, you wouldn't know that.' Derek realized that he had run away.

We all sat around the fire and talked. The one with the crossbow was Daryl and the knife guy, Merle. 'This is Casey, and I'm Derek.' he introduced us. It was nice, but weird because Merle was looking at Dace. Kingsley came back from his hunt in the woods, and Merle got scared. 'It's a wolf!' he yelled. Dave and Derek laughed. 'No, he is a husky and Alaskan malamute mix, an alusky.' Dace smiled.

When night fell, I saw my chance. I got my things they took from me, the medicine, and left a note:

Hey, thanks for the medicine Daryl. The care you gave me, Derek.

Merle, you did...nothing for me. I have to go. If you want to find me

I'll be at the CDC or near Atlanta. Sorry for leaving, but there's

something I have to do.

-Sincerely, Daciana(Dace) a.k.a Casey


	2. Chapter 2

Daryl woke up, he was happier. He didn't know why. The girl was so shy and sweet, but something about her just gravitated joy. She had a bow too, so maybe she knew how to hunt. And her dog was almost wolf like. Daryl was just thinking about her. Then, he saw the note. He read it through quickly, twice.

'What's wrong, little brother? Missin' that little sweet thing? She's too young for the both of us.' Merle laughed when he saw Daryl. 'What about Derek? What about the girl, she can't handle it out there!' Daryl reasoned.

'She can.' Derek came out of the RV,'She was by herself when we first found her. She wants to be on her own.'

Daryl looked at him. 'Dace, that's her real name. Why did she lie?' he wondered. 'A girl kidnapped by three men... What would you do?' Derek asked.

Daryl was done with this man. 'Merle, you coming?' Daryl asked, and grabbed his stuff. He headed towards Atlanta, to find Dace.

Dace was walking pretty quickly, and talking to the dog. 'Kingsley, was I wrong to leave? I know they were probably nice, but I can't help but think. Maybe Travis is there, or... maybe my real mom. I have to see her for myself.' she droned on and on. The sound of moaning and growling caught her attention. Her first walkers appeared from her right. They were hideous looking things.

She took her bow and shot both in the head. 'Well, that wasn't so bad.' she thought aloud. Her dog sniffed the dead bodies. 'Don't eat that! I'm gonna search them.' Dace decided. They had knives and matches on them. 'Maybe this won't be so bad for looting every once in awhile.' she smiled.

She thought about different things while she walked. Food, medicine, other people, her parents, and mostly those men. Why did she like them? Merle was creepy, but Daryl... Daryl was like her. They were both sort of secretive. And definitely unafraid of certain things. One thing always nagged her mind. Why did he have the medicine?

Dace walked until she reached a sign. 'Atlanta. One more mile.' Dace laughed. She was still weary of walkers, until she smelled a fire. 'Campers?' she whispered, and crept towards the smell. There was a camp, and the people there weren't very friendly looking. No women or children. They were talking, and they cursed.

A hand grabbed her, and she jumped. It was a man from the campsite, and he pushed Dace towards the group. 'Hey, little missy. Where you headed?' one of them asked. 'N-nowhere.' she stuttered, they were frightening her. 'Aw, she's trembling. I think I recognize her.' one said. 'Yeah... She's one of the military's daughter!' the one holding her realized.

Dace was pushed onto the ground. 'Now, you're gonna tell us. What is the military doing?' one said, he had a scar on his cheek. 'What? I don't know.' Dace cried. The one with a vest grabbed a hot pan. 'Tell us, what is happening to the world?' Vest asked more firmly. 'An epidemic?' Dace guessed.

'Nope.' Vest said and Scar pulled her hand into the pan. She screamed and cried. All of the sudden, three arrows appeared. Daryl was running to Dace's side, and Merle scoped for others. Dace was still crying. The burn hurt terribly. Daryl bandaged it up for her, and she was sniffing.

'Hey, why did you leave?' he asked when Merle was looking for food. 'I... I don't know. I wanted to go to the CDC. I know some people there. They could tell me where my mom was.' Dace answered. 'So, tell me about yourself.' Daryl said. 'Um.. Well, I'm adopted. I've had 5 foster families, but I stuck with one family. My dad was in the military, and taught me the use of weapons. My mom died. I did visit my real dad, but I hated it there. I've never met my real mom.' Dace admitted. 'Really? Well, my mom died. My dad was terrible to us. My brother has been in tons of trouble. We both know how to hunt.' Daryl said.

'And the medicine?' Dace wondered. 'Our friend had it, but he's gone now.' Daryl replied. It was weird, but to Dace, Daryl was actually nicer than his redneck looks let on. 'Where are you going?' she asked. 'Atlanta. I heard it was overrun, but we don't know where else to go.' he answered. Her dog whined softly.

Merle was back, and with someone else. 'Well, seems like every teenager is running away.' he smiled. 'Hi, I'm Clay.' the boy waved. Clay was younger than Dace. He had blonde hair, but also a strand of blue. 'Are you two part of a group or something?' Merle looked at Dace then Clay. 'No, why?' Dace asked.

'You both have color in your hair.' he pointed out Dace's purple and yellow entwined strand. 'Oh, that? Well, at school it was a sign of what cliche you belonged to. I was in the artists and the sport I play, soccer.' Dace explained.

'You went to Westmont?' Clay guessed. Dace nodded. 'Oh, I was in golf, and in Mrs. Dern's class.', Clay remembered the girl. 'I'm in ninth grade.', Dace said. 'Oh, eighth.' Clay was a little disappointed, and they all heard it.

When everyone got tired, we all went to bed, with someone on watch. Dace was the earliest to wake up, so told Daryl he could sleep a few more hours.

'Five?' he whispered. 'Army daughter.' she shrugged, and watched the sunrise up through the trees. Kingsley was next to her, and she smiled. 'Hey, boy. Did you expect this to happen?' she murmured to the dog.

Once everyone was up, we walked a the mile and found people. They looked up, and Dace immediately knew someone.


	3. Chapter 3: Alone

Isabella. She practically lived to make Dace's life miserable. She had her minions throw Dace into what the adults called Gilder's Gorge, and what the teens called Backstab Hollow. Dace had been in there a total of eleven times, and once hospitalized for a week.

Isabella tormented Dace at school, but Dace never let it show. That's what made her hate Dace even more. Then, there she was in the middle of the woods with two men and a boy.

Dace saw Isabella, and had mixed emotions. Standing in front of her was the girl who made her life miserable, and didn't show any mercy when her foster mother died. Isabelle had no streaks, she was deprived of everyone, and hated Dace for her artistic talent, and boys loved her but Dace paid no attention.

She watched as Dace walked into the camp, shy. She went over to her, and slapped her. Isabella full blown punched her. Dace didn't fight back, she knew if she picked a fight, they weren't going to stay a the camp. "Leave me alone, Isabella!" Dace shouted. Daryl and Lori got in there to break it up. "You know her?" they both asked us. "Yes, she pushed me into a gorge, eleven times." Dace said. "Eleven?" Shane repeated, and looked at Isabella. "She is an annoying child. She needed to learn the social pyramid." Isabella tried to justify herself.

"Oh that's right, Your Royal Majesty, I forgot that you were at the top of that pyramid, aren't you?" Dace asked her sarcastically. Isabella jumped at Dace, but Lori held her back. "No way am I staying here with that thing." Isabella spat at Dace. "Stop it!" Shane yelled. Dace walked away. Isabella glared after her, oh how she hated her.

Daryl went after Dace. "Hey, what was that?" he asked. "The school princess. She loves to torment me." Dace answered, looking at Isabella. She was getting a stern talking to by someone, not her parents. Isabella had abandoned her parents a week ago. "I don't like her." Dace said. "I can see that." Daryl smiled.

Isabella was arguing with a woman named Cher. "Hey, kid, what was that? You attacked a girl for no reason. She just walked into camp. I know you may have had a grudge against her, but that is no reason to do that." Cher said. Isabella looked at the ground, she was plotting her revenge. "Yeah, yeah." she ignored the lecture.

"Go and apologize." Cher demanded. "Fine." Isabella went over to Dace. She was smiling at the redneck guy, who was that? "Hello, you big stupid loser, I came over to say that I enjoyed the...one sided fight." Isabella said. "Well, I didn't want to get off on the wrong hand with the others, and that would mean trouble for Daryl, Merle, and Clay." Dace said. "You did the right thing." Shane came up behind Isabella. "Thanks." Isabella said proudly.

"I meant the new girl. You...that was totally uncalled for." he said. Isabella huffed and left. "Once a Queen, always the Drama expert." Dace muttered. Daryl laughed.

They spent a week in the camp, until something happened. "Merle's going to Atlanta with a few others." Daryl told Dace. "What?!" Dace and Clay said. "Well, it's nothing too bad. He'll be with a few others, there will be guns, and he will come back home, safely." Shane promised us. "Who's going?" Clay asked. "Glenn, Andrea, T-Dog, and Marcus." Shane answered. They were good, but Clay and Dace were still skeptical.

"Bye, Merle." they all said to him. "Goodbye, little brother, Clay, and Dace." he said before he left,"One last thing...Dace, I forgot to give this to you."

He got a bracelet, one he had taken from his former girlfriend, and didn't realize he had. "This belonged to someone I knew, but since I won't use it, I thought you would like it." he shrugged, ignoring the looks from Daryl. "Thank you, Merle. It's beautiful." Dace smiled.

He left on that note, and they watched as the group left for Atlanta. Dace lingered a little longer, and finally was pulled away by Lori. She helped around with the laundry. "Dace, Clay, I know this is a little hard for you two. Merle just left, but the people need meat. I have to pull my weight around here. You two have helped a lot, but I haven't. So, I am going on a hunting trip, not too long. Just as long as Merle is gone, give or take a day." Daryl promised. "What?!" Clay and Dace said, again. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I mean it isn't the city." Daryl smiled. "Well...take Kingsley, and we both would feel a little better. Merle took a gun and hammer, which made us feel better about him leaving." Dace said.

Daryl agreed, and he was on his way. "Bye, Daryl." Dace and Clay waved. Dace sighed. "Wow, your guardians are jerks." Isabella said behind them. Dace almost ran to yell at her, but Clay beat her to it. "Shut up! No one cares about your opinion about these things. The world is insanity, and you think this is like high school? Who's on the top of the pyramid? Just open your eyes! We are all risking every thing to survive!" he yelled, and walked off.

"Go Clay." Dace smiled, chasing after him. Isabella stood there, fuming. "Good job back there." Dace complimented. "She was getting on my nerves." Clay admitted. Dace agreed. "Do you really think that they care about us?" Clay asked. "Yeah. They helped us this far. Merle volunteered to leave to protect others, and Daryl is getting food." Dace reasoned. Clay stopped, and looked at Dace.

"What?" she asked. "Nothing, just looking." he said. He walked ahead again. What could that mean?, Dace wondered. She chased after him again. "Sorry, Dace, but can you help me for a second?" Lori asked. "Of course." she said, and followed Lori. "I need help with the laundry. Carl is somewhere and I need to find him, will you be alright by yourself?" she asked. "Yeah." Dace smiled.

Dace was humming a song while she worked. "Who's humming?" Ed asked angrily. Dace froze. "Um, sorry, Ed. It helps me work." Dace apologized. Ed groaned. "Please don't tell me. Did they leave you to do the laundry?" he asked. "Yeah." Dace answered. He laughed, like one of those laughs that meant wow that's stupid. "Sorry, is there something wrong?" Dace wondered.

"Yeah, why is it that you're here a week and they trust you with a job? They can't trust me with a gun." Ed chuckled. He was drunk. "Well, maybe you should ask someone with the authority." Dace advised him sarcastically. "Yeah, maybe I should." Ed realized, and walked to Shane, slightly tipsy. Shane walked to him, and they had a long talk. Ed started shouting at the end of it and pointed at Dace. "Uh oh. He's coming over here." Dace said quietly.

Shane came over to her with Ed. "Who gave you this job?" he asked. "Lori." Dace answered, wondering what was happening. "Yeah...why are you working?" he wondered. "Well, if you're given a job you should do it." Dace reasoned. "Yeah, yeah. That's a good philosophy. Why aren't you like Clay or Isabella? You know, walking around, exploring, playing?" Shane thought. "Well, I don't know. I didn't do too much of playing or exploring before this happened. Just worked." Dace realized.

"Really? What did you work on?" Shane wondered. "Skills, treehouse, stable work, delivering things for my foster dad." Dace let it slip. "Foster?" Shane tilted his head. "Yes, sir. He is in the military, very strict." Dace said. "Military? Well, why did you leave him?" he asked. "He left me." Dace replied. Shane looked a little shocked. "See, you're lying. No man on earth would leave a child, especially during this." Shane accused her. "No, sir. Not many would, but you didn't know him. He would leave me to find my way back, by myself. He wasn't loving, but he did want me to survive on my own." Dace told him.

Shane grinder his jaw. Shane was humiliated, accusing a little girl, and making a fool of himself. Man, he was ashamed of what Ed had just talked him into. "Ed, she is alright. Pay no mind." Shane told him, and watched Ed walk away. Shane rubbed his head. "I'm sorry, Dace. I didn't mean anything by it. You were doing what you were told. I'll have a word with Lori and leave you to it." he promised and left.

Dace was left on her own, once again. She looked to the sky. "Okay, mom. I was being a little open with the strangers. I promise, I will find you and I won't have to explain why you left, or my life before." Dace whispered.


	4. Chapter 4: Isabella's Mood

Dace was asleep in the RV the past two nights, worrying. Merle and Daryl were still out there, still in the line of danger. She sighed. No sleep tonight, she thought. No one else slept in the RV, just her. Morning came, and so did trouble. Isabella woke up in a mood. She wasn't going to let her emotion go to waste, and there was her victim, Dace. Dace walked out of the RV and yawned, looking for something to do. Isabella was walking towards her, bangs under her eyes.

"Good morning, Isabella. How did you sleep?" Dace asked, trying to set aside their past differences. "Like you care." Isabella spat at her and ran at Dace. Dace was on the ground, being hit repeatedly. Dace covered her face, so only her arms got the beat down. Dace pushed up a knee and Isabella was off of her. Dace got up and looked at her. "What was that for?!" she yelled. "Oh, now you're hostile? Man, you are pathetic." Isabella panted. Dace was confused. "You're joking, right?" she asked. Isabella spit at her, and walked off, the episode over.

Dace felt a sting on her cheek. She put a hand to it, and pulled it away. Blood. She did get me, Dace thought. Dace looked around for a band aid before anyone could help her. When she found one, she put it on and looked at her arm, bruises. Man, she thought, now what will I do. She looked around, and then Shane came into the RV. "Dace?" he asked with a questioning look at her arm. Dace looked at her feet.

"Isabella." she told him. He looked at her and sighed. "You two need to keep separate. No working with that arm." Shane said. "What? It's not that bad." Dace said. "Nope. First off, no kids do chores any way, so consider it a day off." Shane smiled. Dace thought about it. "Okay." she gave in, and looked at her arm. It was bruised, and then a thought came to her. "How hot is it going to be?" she asked. "No sweater weather, that's for sure." Shane read her mind.

She sighed, and thought. "There is no way to hide it." Shane said. Dang it, Dace thought. Shane and Dace walked out of the RV, and she had to face Clay. This ought to be good, Dace realized. "Hey." she greeted. "Dace, what happened to your arm?!" he yelled. "What? No good morning?" she smiled. "Good morning, now what happened?" he asked again. "Ummmmm, fight?" Dace shrugged.

Clay stomped toward Isabella. "Why? Why does it always come to Clay defending me?" Dace thought aloud. She walked towards the scene of the argument. Isabella was yelling, and Clay was as well. Dace ran over and sighed. She got in the middle, time to play peacekeeper. Isabella took one look at her and smiled. "Aww, you two make such a cute couple." she laughed.

Dace looked at Clay, and shrugged. She turned and punched Isabella. "That felt like...it could have been avoided." Dace said, and walked off with Clay. Isabella was crying behind them. Dace didn't break her nose, hit her in the nose, or gave her a black eye. Dace hit her on the cheek, and left a good scratch. Shane walked by us, and Dace regretted hitting Isabella.

"Am I going to be in trouble?" Dace asked Clay. "No...maybe." Clay smiled. "You are terrible." Dace laughed and gave him a playful shove. He returned it by messing up her hair, and stealing her hat. "No, I need that." Dace chased Clay around the camp, accidentally disturbing the others. Dace finally snatched the hat when he was looking the other way.

"Congrats." Clay laughed. Dace put on her hat triumphantly, and turned to see Shane with Isabella. "Uh-oh." Dace cringed at the sight. Dace walked towards them, and got ready for the scolding. "You're not in trouble." Shane told her. "Wait, really?" Dace calmed down. "No. Little lady here, is." Shane looked sternly at Isabella, who now had a nickname in Dace's world: Bell.

Bell looked like she was going to murder someone, Dace was definitely on the top of that list. "I'm sorry, Dace. I'm sorry for cutting up your face, and hurting you the last few days." she said, almost sincerely. "Thanks. Hey, no hard feelings?" Dace held out her hand,"But, I'm also not the only guilty party. I'm sorry for punching you."

Bell smiled and shook my hand. Shane left, happy to see we made up. "Good acting, Doof." Bell smiled, and waved mockingly goodbye. Man, I hate her, Dace thought, and turned to Clay. Dace realized something. Clay was becoming like her brother, but did he think that?

Clay interrupted her thoughts. "Hey, do you want to walk to the quarry? I want to ask you something." he said. Perfect timing, Dace thought. "Of course, there was something I wanted to ask too, but you can go first." she told him. They walked down, talking about other things, and at the bottom, the bomb dropped.

"Okay, Dace, this relationship... I don't want to date someone older than me." Clay admitted. "That's sort of what I wanted to ask you about too." Dace chuckled. "So, what should this 'status' be?" he wondered. "Like it was meant to be in the first place. Foster siblings." Dace answered. Clay agreed.

They went back up, Clays arm around her, smiling and laughing. There was a car siren in the distance. Dace looked to the road. "Is that them?" she wondered. "Maybe, c'mon." Clay practically dragged Dace to the top. They looked at a red car driven by Glenn. "What was he thinking?" Dace thought aloud. Clay chuckled.

Everyone in the group gathered around the RV, and waited for the others. They came in a van. Andrea and Amy had a reunion. T-Dog and Jacqui had a reunion. Dace and Clay looked for Merle. The other family got together. The last person in the van stepped out, not Merle. It was another man who was reunited with his family, he was in the hospital prior to the mess.

Clay looked at Dace. Dace was almost to tears. "Where's Merle?" Clay asked Rick, the hospital guy. "We had to leave him, he was getting violent." Rick said, with almost no sympathy in his voice. "You left him for dead?" Dace guessed, still choking back tears. "Well, yes. I am fully responsible for it... We're you related?" he asked. "Not blood related, he sort of the one who takes care of us with his brother." Clay answered.

Dace was clearly upset by this. She broke away from Clay and walked off. Rick just looked after her as Clay chased after her. When he caught up, they sat down and stayed in silence. Clay was the first to speak up. "Hey, he's not dead. They just left him." he tried to reassure her. "I know, but chained to a roof? What are we going to tell Daryl?" Dace asked.


	5. Chapter 5: Leaving

Dace and Clay planned what they were going to say to Daryl, but they never got the chance. Dace was down in the quarry fishing with Clay, but neither of them knew that Daryl was coming back. They came back to the camp with tons of fish, and noticed the gathering of people. Clay put the fish on the rack and joined the circle.

Dace stood next to him, but neither could see anything above the adults. "Dale, what's going on?" Clay asked. "Well, Daryl is back. And clearly mad about Merle being trapped." Dale answered, and stood back to let them see.

Daryl was fighting with Rick and Shane. Dace stood and watched, overwhelmed by the whole scene. Clay stepped in and tried to calm Daryl down. "Daryl, fighting won't help." he said. Daryl stopped and looked at Dace, she smiled. He sighed and turned to Rick. "Better hope he's alive." he told Rick, and left with Clay. Dace followed the two in silence, Kingsley happily beside her. Daryl finally sat and so did the kids.

"Hey." Dace greeted, breaking the silence. "So, what's been happening with you two?" Daryl asked. "Nothing really, got in a few fights with Isabella, got into trouble with Ed. Otherwise, Clay has been good." Dace announced. "You've been into trouble?" Daryl laughed. "Yeah, I'm not exactly loved here, but it's good." Dace smiled.

"Well, I've been fishing mostly. Hanging out with Carl." Clay said. "What else has been happening?" Daryl asked. "Nothing really. No fights, no attacks from the dead, nothing." Dace said. "Well, I'm sorry for leaving you again, but I'm going back for Merle." Daryl apologized. "It's okay. We understand why. It was uncalled for to let Merle be left behind." Clay said.

The day went by quickly. In the morning, Daryl left with Rick, T-Dog, and Glenn. Dace had a plan of her own. "Clay, I'm leaving." I told him. "What?!" he almost yelled. I pulled him into the forest. "I want you to come with me. These people...they aren't exactly nice to me, so I want to leave. Daryl has Merle, and I don't want to leave you." Dace finished.

Clay looked at her and thought about it. "When do we leave?" he asked. "Tonight, after everyone is in bed. One guard up on the RV, we'll turn the tent around and leave. I've already packed, and I think you should pack now too." Dace announced. Someone overheard them, and little did they know it, they were going to ruin their plan.

Dace went down to the quarry to help with the laundry. The women were having their talk about missing things while Ed 'watched' over us and smoke a cigar. Andrea was bold enough to speak up. "Hey, Ed. Why don't you try working, doing your own clothes? 'Stead of sitting there." she said to him. "I don't need to do a woman's work." he retorted. He looked at Carol. "Come along now." he told her, and Carol started to follow but Andrea stopped her. "So she can show up with fresh bruises later? We've all seen them, Ed." Jacqui told him.

Ed grabbed Carol, but Andrea pulled her back. "Don't go." she said to her. Ed stopped, and slapped Carol. Then, Shane came out of nowhere, beating the crap out of him. "Why?" Dace whispered. Amy dragged her away from the scene of the beating, and Dace knew they had to leave soon. Shane came up while Dace was whispering to Clay. "Hey, you two." Shane called. Dace tensed. She sensed he knew about it,the ultimate plan. "Hello, Shane. What can I do for you?" Clay asked, still calm.

"Oh, I know about the plan." Shane announced. "So? You can't stop us. We don't like anyone here, Daryl's left us. Merle's gone." Dace reasoned. "Well, maybe we can strike a deal..." Shane stopped, and Clay looked at Dace. "We're not accepting adults. We are only taking kids." Clay told him. Shane looked unsurprised by this. "No, we're corrupt, so... I understand. You see, I sort of guessed that. I want you to take someone, a kid. He's your age. He's not too far from here. Please, take him with you." Shane implored. "We can." Dace promised,"Give us the address, and we'll leave within two hours."

Shane wrote it down for them, and smiled. "Thank you." he whispered. "I want you to do something for us." Dace said. "Anything." Shane told them. "Please, tell Daryl that we ran away because of Ed." Dace asked. "Of course." Shane understood.

Dace and Clay had all their stuff, and they ran. They ran into the forest. Not knowing that Daryl was going to be alone when he'd return. Not knowing that because they left, Daryl turned colder. When he met Carol, he softened.

Now, this is new...

Do you guys want Dace to fall in love with Shane's friend, or someone else they meet?

Secondly, do you want a Supernatural, Sherlock, or Lost fanfic?

This maybe boring now, and I apologize for the lack of Dace's Family Struggles, but during the school year, almost no time.

~Here, here. From the Doodler of Wolves.


	6. Chapter 6: Smith

**Dace was walking in the woods with Clay. It has been three days since they have left the campsite and the last time they have seen any people. Clay was actually happy to be away from the adults now, he was skeptical at first, but warmed up to the idea. It was Dace's idea to go on without the adults. She took Shane's request, and the two were on their way to find some kid. The boy was named Smith, Shane told them before they left. Shane told them where to find him, but so far they had no luck. "How long was he supposed to be out?" Clay asked. "I don't know. He said less than a week, if I recall it correctly," Dace replied, taking the lead. Then they heard the shouts, not shouts of fear. Dace and Clay stopped, confused by someone's sudden outburst.**

**There stood a kid in the woods. "Um, are you Smith?" Clay asked. The kid dropped whatever he was holding. "Yeah! Who's asking?" Smith wondered. "We know a guy named Shane, he told us you would be here. We left his group and came to join you. Or wondered if you would like to join us?" Dace asked. Smith picked up what he dropped and walked to us. "Shane sent you. So, does that mean he's not coming back to us?" Smith wondered. "What do you mean come back?" Clay asked. "Well, before this started, Shane told me that he would come back for us after he got his friend's family to safety. It's been a long time and he hasn't come back… Is he alright?" Smith wondered.**

**Dace smiled at him. "Yes, he is. He's not coming back, however, we're here to take care of you," she tried to reassure him. Smith processed the entire scenario. "So, he sent me a babysitter, for life," he chuckled. "Two babysitters," Clay corrected him. Dace looked at him like he had lost his mind. "What?" Clay asked. "You want to be a babysitter?" Dace laughed. Clay thought about what he said.**

**They both turned back to Smith. "Are you in?" asked Dace. Smith looked back at the path he was originally taking. "No way can I refuse Shane…" Smith paused. Dace and Clay waited patiently for Smith's answer. "Yes, I will join you," Smith finally decided. Dace smiled. "Where to?" Clay asked Dace. "The CDC is our best bet. We are in the opposite direction, so I will gladly take any other suggestions," she said. They all thought long and hard about it. "I was on my way to South Carolina to see if they're faring any differently than we are. Wanna take the chance?" Smith asked. "Seems the better option. Clay?" Dace turned to him. "Yeah, anywhere you go, I'll follow. We're in this together, remember?" Clay reminded Dace.**

**"****Of course," she smiled. "Good, on our way then," Smith started off on his route. Dace remembered South Carolina. She thought about all the things that happened over the last couple of weeks. Kinglsey was gone, he was just gone and Dace didn't want to talk about it. Clay looked at her in concern. She hadn't been talking at all for the last half hour of walking. I wonder if she's okay, Clay thought. He smiled to himself. I'm definitely fulfilling the role of the concerned brother, he thought.**

**Smith broke the silence, and Clay was more than thankful for that. "So, it's been a while since I've seen any kid. How is it out there?" he asked. "Scary. No one really understands what they're doing at all. Some people believe they got everything under control, but I don't think they do. I hope the next group we find won't be like that," Dace answered. Clay stared at her. "Wow, that's deep…" Smith said. "In a hopefully stupider answer to your question, it's crazy out there. Everyone's stockpiling on guns, ammunition, and anything else of worth to survive. But like Dace said, no one really knows much about this whole thing. Getting deep again, everyone knows the key thing is to survive, but no one knows what they're doing as time goes on." Clay said.**

**"****What are you two in? A debate or philosophy club?" Smith asked. Dace chuckled. "Nope, nothing of the sort." she said. "Okay. Wow, is it dark already?" Smith looked up to the sky. The stars were already upon the horizon, and the sun was glowing faintly. "Wait, where should we sleep?" Clay asked. Dace stopped and took some things out of her bag. "Here will be fine." she said. Clay looked around. Trees everywhere, and no walkers could be seen. "Um… I don't feel all that safe." Clay said. Clay saw what Dace brought. Cans and rope? **

**Dace strung it low enough to the ground to trip someone easily, and cans were hung under it. Smith saw what she was doing and applauded. "Brilliant, now we'll know if any of them are coming!" Smith said. "Yeah, can you two set up the tent? I'm going to look around a bit." she said. Smith and Clay agreed, and they both set up a tent that would probably impress a boy scout. Dace came back, and she brought fresh water. "There's a running stream over there. I believe it is safe enough to drink." she said. The boys as impressed with her as she was impressed by their tent. They slept pretty well knowing their security was full proof. The next couple days followed the same routine: walking, setting up tents, putting it back down, talking, and thankfully no arguing. Three days after meeting Smith, they were already good friends. And then they were going to meet some more. That's when they heard a scream.**


	7. Chapter 7: Kids

**Dace, Clay, and Smith ran to the scene. They found a group of kids being surrounded by the walkers. They were scared and all looked to be younger than Dace and the two boys. Without thinking, Dace runs in and attacks the first walker with her knife. Clay and Smith exchanged looks before following her. Together, they were able to kill all the walkers, and the kids were standing there, petrified. Dace went to them. "Are you okay? None of you got bitten, right?" Dace asked them. None of the kids said anything. "No, we didn't. I think we're just all scared." one of the boys said. "Good. Who's looking after you?" Dace asked. "Uncle Marvin," one of the girls said, she seemed to be 10. "Okay, but where are they?" Clay asked.**

** "****They went on a hunt. No one's come back for at least an hour." the same boy replied. Dace turned the boys. "We should stay. I don't want them to be attacked again. It'll just be until the adults come back." she told them. The boys agreed. Dace saw the frightened children, and she decided to console them. "Hey, it's okay. You guys are alright. We'll stay with you." she said to them. The youngest looking girl smiled shyly at Dace. A loud noise frightened the three teens. "It's okay, it's just the radio." a boy said. "Radio?" Dace echoed. The boy hurried to the place where they had kept it hidden. A radio transmission was being broadcasted. "This is going out to everyone nearby. The CDC has fallen. I repeat, the CDC has fallen." a voice announced. **

**Dace's heart sank a bit. ****_If the CDC is gone, what does that mean for…_**** Dace quickly shook that thought from her head, ****_she can't possibly… no. _****Clay noticed the slight change in Dace's expression. "Dace?" he asked. She looked up absently, still lost in thought. "I'm okay." Dace responded. The kids weren't worried at all, but they probably didn't know what the CDC even was. Dace looked around at the group or kids. "Well, we haven't introduced ourselves," she realized, "I'm Daciana, but call me Dace. This is Clay and Smith."**

**Her companions waved at them awkwardly. "Well, I'm Arnold. This is Candace and Owen, they're twins. Louie, Belle, Erin, and Maxwell. Belle's my little sister, Erin is the twin's sister, and Maxwell is Louie's brother," he introduced them all. Candace and Owen were both redheads with plenty of freckles and green eyes. Erin didn't look like the twins. She had dark brown hair and blue eyes. Louie and Maxwell had the same light brown hair and tanner skin, but Louie had freckles. Arnold and Belle weren't similar in characteristics. Arnold had black hair, glasses, and brown eyes. Belle had blonde hair, blue eyes, and was tanner than her brother. **

** "****So, you're all family," Clay commented. Arnold nodded. He was the oldest looking, probably around the age of eleven. "Why did the adults leave you? Candace, you said that Uncle Marvin was looking after you. Where is he?" Dace asked. Candace and Owen gave each other a look and then answered her. "Uncle Marvin ran when he saw them. He left us." Owen replied. That greatly alarmed Dace. What man just leaves kids to fend for themselves, especially with this own nieces and nephew amoung the group? ****_Well, Travis did leave me on my own, _****Dace thought. "So, they left one guy in charge of all of you?" Smith suspected something. "Yeah, the adults all left us with him. They said they wouldn't be gone long." Arnold answered.**

** "****This isn't your base, is it?" Clay looked around. No tents were up, no fire pit to keep warm at night, no sign of a camp at all. "No, silly. We came here because they chased us." Erin said so innocently. Dace chuckled at Clay's reaction to being called silly. "Lead us to your base." Dace told Arnold. **


End file.
